Four big Celtics issues, including tough decisions with the embarrassment of wealth and the Smartest closing range

Except maybe rebound.

Two years ago, while they were led by Isaiah Thomas as a team of super-testers who covered his coverage until the Eastern Conference finals, the Celtics have been one of the five worst teams in the league. and that's one of the reasons why nobody ever really thought it was a real elite team.

Last season, Boston moved to eleventh place on the defensive glass, and Baynes and Horford's double combo was a big part of it. The two guys got just under 22% of the rebounds available when they were on the floor, which is a good number, but not an elite one. The key is what they do when playing together. Last season, Boston rolled out four different lines that played at least 100 minutes together. Two of these queues had a two-digit net score. Horford and Baynes were in both.

By digging deeper, the defensive scores of these two alignments were respectively 98.3 and 92.2. In short, a team that has both Horford and Baynes on the field will be a good rebounding team and a great defensive team, considering the Boston shares. Now, a team that changes Hayward to Baynes, of course, has its own merits, and the offensive recovery may well negate the rebound potential of the downgrade. The Celtics will surely watch this, and it could become a game-dependent decision for Stevens.

In the end, a range of Irving, Brown, Hayward, Tatum and Horford looks a lot like the famous Death series of Warphor, Steph Curry, Klay Thompson, Andre Iguodala, Kevin Durant and Draymond Green. It's all about size and versatility with multiple game leaders bouncing and pushing back. But as most know, warriors do not begin this training. They end up with that. Playing this small amount regularly can be very expensive for you on the defensive part and on the glass.

The Celtics will probably start with their little training, and it will be a monster in many ways. But this has a cost. Just something to keep in mind.

What is the most intelligent finishing range?

Boston signed a $ 52 million four-year contract this summer with Marcus Smart. However, Smart may end up feeling the tightening of Hayward's account. We already know that Smart will not start. The question is: will he finish? In the NBA of today, it is really all that matters. Who is on the ground in the winning time?

Smart has been a staple in Stevens' finishes for a reason. Last season, his net score of more than 7.8 in clutch time (defined as a five-point match with less than five minutes to play) was second only to Jayson Tatum among Boston players with significant time in these situations. Last year, in the playoffs, it is clear that Smart is one of the most successful teams in the fourth quarter of Boston (Terry Rozier, Smart, Tatum, Marcus Morris and Horford), over 33.9 for 100 minutes. . As long as we choose the numbers, Smart has also achieved the highest individual defense rating in the fourth quarter among Celtics regulars.

Now, we all know that numbers can be misleading, and frankly, the impact of Smart goes well beyond the numbers, including its historically terrible shooting percentages. The guy is just a winner, mainly for his defense, but also for his ability to make quick shots and his ability to make games for his teammates and to attract defensive attention that denies his inability to shoot. It does not make much sense that defenders stick to it unless will shoot at his real ability to shoot, and many people believe it. If you are not afraid to shoot, the defenders will protect you. It's a basketball instinct.

Anyway, Smart has proved, sometimes against all probability, that he deserves all Stevens' trust (or something close) in the most critical parts of the games. Yet only five guys can play. In cases where Stevens relies on his starting lineup of Irving, Brown, Hayward, Tatum and Horford to close his matches, Smart will be the odd man. On the other hand, there could also be moments, whether in particular encounters or just during certain games where Smart has had a total impact, that Stevens will choose to drive Smart. And in these situations, who is going out?

This question raises this question in turn …

What is the Hayward-Tatum-Brown hierarchy?

There is no lineup in the league that has three players more interchangeable than these three players. This is a huge luxury in terms of versatility, not to mention the insurance against the damage suffered by one of them – but it could also, under certain circumstances, become one of those good problems where it becomes almost impossible to decide which type. Pulls the straw short when there comes a time when the Celtics are in full health and Smart plays in a way that forces Stevens to keep him on the floor late in the game.

Seriously, who gets the hook of these three?

This is an issue that goes beyond the potential gambling time and perhaps the field of future Boston plans. There's a way for Danny Ainge to play all those guys, but there's that kind of tacit debate about who would be the most available player if the Celtics really want to get another star through the trade, which always threatens them. make. Tatum is generally considered untouchable. Hayward would probably not quite value considering his age and his contract. Brown feels like the third wheel here.

Man, what team you put on the floor when Jaylen Brown is your third best wing and probably the first candidate to move on the bench if Stevens chooses to start big with Baynes or finish with Smart. Brown is so good. Given the minutes and opportunities, he could be an All-Star this season. No question.

Chances are, none of this will become a big problem. There will be injuries. Stevens will balance the minutes in the brilliant way he does everything else. But again, in the perfect world where everyone is healthy and Smart is doing his jumps, someone is going to be bumped. And do not forget that it means nothing to Rozier and / or Marcus Morris, who will probably not attempt to be in the top six of the regular rotation, but both are able to warm up enough the final alignment, which brings another layer of decision-making for Stevens.

No matter what coach in the world would submit to these kinds of decisions, but these are still decisions. You can look at it in two ways: Stevens either can not do bad, or he can not do the right thing.

Can Kyrie resist the defense of isolation?

OK, let's look at a scenario where Stevens wants Hayward, Tatum and Brown to be on the floor, and by their side he decides that Smart should stay on the floor. Assuming you wanted to keep going, Kyrie Irving would become the weird man. I must admit that there is a part of me that wants to dream of a program that will bring Smart to the fore with Brown, Hayward, Tatum and Horford. I have no idea how you could score on this training, and you could still have a lot of attack.

That said, it's almost impossible to imagine that Kyrie does not finish her games. He is arguably the league's best head-to-head creator, which is extremely important in the end when teams change even more and offensive systems tend to stop. Kyrie will be on the court. Considering the alternative is only an exercise.

The referee to have Kyrie instead of Smart, or maybe instead of one of the wings, is the defense, and the teams will surely try to exploit Irving on the defensive game in the same way as the teams at Stephen Curry – not so much because Curry is a particularly poor defender, but simply because the other warriors on the ground are elite. Boston will have four switchable length and track and field defensemen, and Irving, a defender of the average at best, will be highlighted by default. Can he bear it?

Boston will surely have some maneuvers to prevent Irving from turning to bigger handlers, or to double up quickly and force the ball out of his man's hands and rely on their length and athleticism to turn and recover. Irving will simply have to gear up for the defense of a bigger, stronger and more athletic offensive player, much like when Curry has to face a LeBron James or a Russell Westbrook or anything else. other. Even though these are just a few possessions in the last few minutes, these possessions decide games.

So, these are good problems, yes?

No, these are not big problems. I'm just saying keep an eye on these things because they will be a fascinating study in talent deployment, and frankly, because there is not much to worry about with this Celtics team, which according to N & # 39; any level of evaluation will be so creepy. The thing is this being good is a burden in itself. There is no longer a period of grace while LeBron James reigns supreme over the East. The king went to the west. The throne is open. That's it now.

In the end, one of those decisions about the role of the players and when they will occur could be the difference between going to the NBA Finals or even winning a team, such as Toronto or Philadelphia before Boston. gets even more than last season. Stevens will make a nocturnal decision on how to allocate his troops, and he will use the regular season to learn more about how some players play together to inform his serial deployments.

These are all big names, but remember, Brett Brown met Ben Simmons in last year 's playoffs for T.J. McConnell. Difficult decisions must be made and your name does not matter when it comes. This is going to be exciting to watch as the guys who are used to being the star have to potentially bite the ball in the name of chasing a championship.